What's Hot: Very slim and light, easy to use, comes with a screen protector

What's Not: Top and bottom sides are mostly exposed.

Reviewed by Tong Zhang

iSkin has released several protective cases in various styles for the Samsung Galaxy S III. The iSkin aura case is very slim and light, yet protective and easy to grip. The aura case is very form fitting and offers access to all the controls on the Android smartphone. It also offers three color combos including Eclipse (Black/Blue), Halo (Pink/White) and Nova (Red/Black).

Design

iSkin has used the aura series design for other devices, the aura for Samsung Galaxy S III follows suit. It's made with aircraft-grade aluminum for most part of the back cover that's surrounded by rubber coated polycarbonate plastic. The metal piece keeps the case structurally durable and prevents more serious bumps and scratches to the back of your Galaxy S III, while the soft touch plastic provides flexibility that makes it easy to put the case on and take it off, as well as a nice grip to prevent the phone from slipping out of your hand. The back of the case hugs the Samsung Galaxy S III's curve very nicely and fits the phone like a glove.

The iSkin aura for Samsung Galaxy S III has a soft coating on the interior that won't mark your smartphone when you are handling it with the case. The case wraps around the two long vertical sides of the phone, but leaves out most of the top and the bottom side open. It doesn't raise above the display from the sides however, which means the case won't make contact with the surface when you put your phone face down. The case comes with a nice film that covers most of the front glass, but not entirely.

The iSkni aura comes in three color combos and no matter which of the available colors of the Galaxy S III, blue, white or garnet red, the case has you covered. The Eclipse combos has black plastic surroundings with blue metal and silver lines, the Halo combo has white plastic with pink metal and silver lines, while the Nova combo offers black plastic with silver metal and red lines and accents.

Features

The iSkin aura for the Samsung Galaxy S III is a very functional case thanks to the design and the cutouts it offers for the buttons and ports on the smartphone. Since the top and bottom of the phone are mostly exposed, you can easily use the charging/syncing port and the 3.5mm audio jack with any cable. Both top and bottom mics are exposed for full noise canceling. The case has cutouts for the side buttons including the volume rocker and the power button, and it fixes an issue some users have with the phone's design: when they press the volume buttons they might accentually press the power button, or vice versa. With the aura case on, you will likely avoid pressing these buttons on the opposite side the phone together accidentally.

The iSkin aura case has perfect cutouts for the rear camera, flash and the built-in speakerphone. Both the camera and flash cutouts give enough space to give the camera full view and flash to fully illuminate. The case also has two small holes for a light charm.

Conclusion

If you are looking for a slim and light case to protect the Samsung Galaxy S III, the iSkin aura provides good protection from bumps, bruises and scratches. It's easy to use, and it's grippy for better handling. The case gives you access to all buttons and ports, and protects the screen with a thick film protector. The only parts on the phone that are more exposed are the top and bottom. We also appreciate the three color combo options for Galaxy S III users who want a case to match their phone's color.